Bank Of America Settlement To Funnel $1B To Floridians

MIAMI (CBSMiami/NSF) — A massive settlement announced Thursday between Bank of America and the U.S. Department of Justice will provide about $1 billion in assistance to thousands of Floridians, state Attorney General Pam Bondi said.

The settlement, which totals $16.65 billion, stems from claims about mortgage-related practices by Bank of America and current or former subsidiaries, such as Countrywide Financial Corp. and Merrill Lynch, that played a part in the country’s financial crisis.

Of that overall total, about $7 billion will be used to provide assistance to consumers.

That assistance will include such things as principal reductions on loans and providing new loans to credit-worthy borrowers, according to the Department of Justice.

Bondi’s office released a letter from Bank of America that said about $1 billion of the $7 billion would flow to Florida, which has grappled with large numbers of foreclosures and other problems in the housing market since the financial crisis.